He and Rachel looked at each other.
“You go,” he said to her.
“No,” I snapped at Lars. “If Dario goes,yougo with him. Rachel stays behind.”
“But she’s the best driver we’ve got!”
I turned to Rachel. “Who’s the best foot soldier you’ve trained?”
“Giorgio,” she said without hesitation.
“He’s already left for Fiesole. Who’s second?”
“Renzo,” Lars said.
“Yeah,” Rachel concurred.
“Better than you?” I asked Lars.
“Oh yeah,” Rachel agreed.
“Hey,” Lars said in annoyance.
I called the garage again.
“Sir?”
“Make sure Renzo is driving one of the Mercedes,” I ordered.
“Yes, sir.”
I hung up and looked at Lars. “Renzo drives you, Alessandra, and Dario in one car. Massimo follows in the Bugatti just in case, along with another five cars full of foot soldiers. We can call in Adriano if we need him, but Rachelhasto stay at the house to guard the rest of us.”
“Dario’s not going to like this,” Lars said.
“Dario’s not in his right mind at the moment, so I’m calling the shots.”
“But – ”
“It’s not up for fucking discussion,” I snarled.
There are times when aconsiglierecan’t be bothered with others’ personal feelings.
This was one of those times.
Lars knew it, and he nodded reluctantly. “Alright, let’s go.”
By the time we rejoined the others, Massimo was already halfway down the stairs with Alessandra. He took the steps carefully, like he was carrying the most precious cargo in the world.
Caterina, Sofia, Lucia, Bianca, and Mei-ling had come out into the foyer and were staring up in fright.
“What’s wrong?!” Caterina cried out. “Ale, are you okay?!”
“Everyone get out of Massimo’s way,” I called out. “There’s a minor medical emergency, so we’re taking Alessandra to the doctor’s.”
“What’s going on?!” Lucia demanded.
Just then, all seven cars pulled up out front.
